California Government Code §65852.2(a)(6) prohibits using ADUs and JADUs as short-term rentals of fewer than 30 days. Visalia goes further: VMC §17.32.166 (effective December 6, 2023) expressly prohibits ADUs, garages, tents, camper trailers, RVs, and other exterior structures from being used as short-term rentals or as bedrooms within an STR. Long-term rentals of 30+ days are permitted with no additional Visalia license requirement for the ADU itself.
Under California AB 587 (Gov. Code §65852.2(a)(6)), any ADU or JADU permitted on or after January 1, 2020 may not be rented for periods shorter than 30 days, and a deed restriction is recorded against the property at permit issuance. Visalia layered an explicit prohibition through VMC §17.32.166, which became effective December 6, 2023 — this section governs short-term rental permits and states that 'only the habitable interior portions of a primary dwelling shall be utilized as a short-term rental' and that ADUs, garages, tents, RVs, and other accessory structures are not permissible STR units. STRs are also capped at one unit per parcel in any residentially zoned district. Long-term rentals (30+ days) of an ADU require no special Visalia license; the unit must comply with California Civil Code tenant-landlord rules including security deposit limits (Civ. Code §1950.5) and just-cause eviction protections under the Tenant Protection Act of 2019 (Civ. Code §1946.2) where applicable. ADUs cannot be sold separately from the primary dwelling because Visalia has not opted in to AB 1033 condo-ization.
Renting an ADU for less than 30 days violates both state law and VMC §17.32.166. Enforcement is through Code Enforcement under VMC Title 1 with administrative citations and stop-use orders, plus injunctive relief to enforce the recorded deed restriction. Operating without a Visalia STR permit (where one would otherwise be allowed) and without remitting Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) triggers separate Finance Department collection actions including back-tax assessments and penalties.
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See how Visalia's adu rental restrictions rules stack up against other locations.
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